The Grey Rebellion
* * * (2 captured) * (captured) * |partof= |garrison= Assault Carrier Blinding Fury |nickname= |motto= |mascot= |equipment= |battles= *Liberation of Balaho *Siege of Te *Massacre of Pegasi Delta *Grey Rebellion Apex |disbanded= 370th Cycle of the 29th Age of Conflict |currentcommander= |chiefofstaff= |cmcpo= |notablecommanders= *Rebel Leader Kyrin 'Forus * Zakl 'Nenil }} The Grey Rebellion was an insurrectionist movement which occurred approximately five hundred and fifty years before the beginning of the and was headed by former Kyrin 'Forus. The Rebellion was significant enough in the to usher in the 29th due to the entirety of the 2nd Fleet of Undying Justice, under the command of Kyrin 'Forus, breaking off from the Covenant as a whole and becoming an independent entity. This schism was signified by the removal of rank colours and ornaments, where the name Grey Rebellion originated from. Origin Discovery of The Knowing The events that ultimately led to the creation of the Grey Rebellion began with the discovery of the A.I. which identified itself as . While on a routine patrol on the edges of Covenant controlled space, the Victorious Prophecy of the 2nd Fleet of Undying Justice, under the command of Zakl 'Nenilee discovered the planet designated as Zolea-3 which, after the planet was scanned by the on board system was found to be housing multiple Forerunner artifacts buried underneath the planets' surface. He subsequently notified Fleet Master Kyrin 'Forusee and the of . Due to the Fleet Masters relative closeness to the Zolea Star System, Kyrin 'Forusee and his fleet were in orbit of Zolea-3 in short notice; while the fleet of the High Prophets were many away from the system. Receiving the go ahead from the High Prophet of Accusation, Kyrin led a strike force, which Zakl 'Nenilee was a part of into the earth of Zolea-3 to discover and document the multiple Forerunner artifacts buried within. The first Forerunner Artifact they attempted to uncover was the largest, and undoubtedly most dangerous. After narrowly dispatching several wall-mounted, motion-activated Forerunner defence systems and even a severely damaged Forerunner mech, which killed all of Kyrins' zealots save Zakl 'Nenilee, Kyrin and Zakl made it to the central chamber which housed the Forerunner A.I. known as The Knowing. When Kyrin first conversed with The Knowing, it became apparent it had extensive knowledge, not only of the and the Covenant, but of many things in the galaxy and was happy to share much of the information it had garnered over the thousands of years it had been isolated. What Kyrin learned of the shook him to the very core, and his beliefs were shattered. Conception and Reveal After the discovery of the lie that was The Great Journey, and spreading this knowledge to his fleet, Kyrin ordered a full retreat of the Zolea System, but not before blocking off the chamber of The Knowing, effectively blocking all entrance to its' vast knowledge for over five hundred years. After convincing the soldiers of the 2nd Fleet of Undying Justice of the terrible heresy they had been committing by following the Prophets on the path to The Great Journey, they quickly made haste out of the system, and cut off all communications from High Charity and the Hierarchs. After Kyrin and the 2nd Fleet of Undying Justice fled the Zolea System and touched down at a safe distance, Kyrin, along with the rest of his Sangheili contemplated the knowledge The Knowing had given them. After a cycle of determining their next course of action, all Sangheili agreed to break off from the Covenant, and so they stripped themselves of their ornaments and wiped away the colour that signified their rank in the Covenant. Three cycles after the Grey Rebellion was created, the fleet of the High Prophet of Accusation entered the Zolea System and found it devoid of Covenant forces. Already suspicious due to no contact with Fleet Master Kyrin 'Forusee and his fleet, his suspicions were confirmed when an individual Battlecruiser entered the system and announced the Grey Rebellion as an independent entity. Thus officially began the Grey Rebellion. Notable Conflicts Skirmishes Between Grey and Covenant Forces Throughout the entirety of the Grey Rebellion, small skirmishes consistently occurred between the Grey Rebellion and Covenant forces across inner Covenant-controlled space. These skirmishes were relatively small, with usually less than ten ships on each side. These small battles usually concluded in a Rebellion victory, due to their constant and excellent use of guerrilla tactics. This caused great hate in the Sangheili warriors of the Covenant, due to the dishonourable way of fighting the Grey Rebellion showed. The skirmishes were a constant thorn in the side of the Covenant Empire, and the lack of victorious encounters caused drops in morale across the Covenant Military, which ultimately gave way to the decisive victory at Balaho. Liberation of Balaho The Liberation of Balaho was the first large scale attack the Grey Rebellion orchestrated against the Covenant, which resulted in a decisive Rebellion victory. Balahos' Liberation was split into six different phases: *Phase One: Takeover of Covenant vessel. *Phase Two: Takeover of the Ardent Heresy, flagship of the Balaho Defence Fleet (BDF). *Phase Three: Destruction of Covenant communication satellites and arrival of the 2nd Fleet of Undying Justice. *Phase Four: and capture of the on the surface of . *Phase Five: Orbital bombardment of Covenant forces on the surface of Balaho. *Phase Six: Release and rescue of Unggoy slaves. Before phase one of Balahos' Liberation, a single corvette made to look deserted and disabled entered the on the dark side of , the secondary natural satellite of Balaho. Drifting out into range of the BDF sensory systems, a single Covenant frigate was sent to investigate the lone vessel. Unbeknownst to the soldiers aboard the frigate, the seemingly dead corvette housed the rebel leader Kyrin 'Forus and multiple boarding parties of Sangheili, Unggoy and Kig-Yar. When the frigate docked with the corvette and a boarding party was sent over to it, they were quickly decimated by 'Forus and his soldiers before heading into the frigate itself. Already on alert after the disappearance of the boarding party, barricades had been set up and the bridge had been fortified. Seeing this when 'Forus and his forces tried to enter the bridge, he sent two Sangheili lances to take care of the rest of the ship, while he, Zakl 'Nenil and three Special Operations Sangheili dealt with the bridge. However, due to the incompetence of the Unggoy bridge personnel and the lack of Sangheili guidance, 'Forus and his warriors were able to capture the frigate and apprehend its' Shipmaster without a distress signal being sent out. With the frigate under Grey control, it was directed back to the Ardent Heresy and requested to dock with it, with a message being sent saying, "We have discovered something on the corvette, your assistance is required Fleet Master." With phase one of the operation complete, the Grey forces aboard the frigate disguised themselves as Covenant personnel and the Shipmaster used as a way to not rouse suspicion. Siege of Te -In Progress- Instigation of the Y'deio Uprising -In Progress- Massacre of Pegasi Delta -In Progress- The Grey Rebellion Apex / Rebel Leader Kyrin 'Forus |commanders2= * Laras 'Jar Dunkaree *Fleet Master Vaht 'Lhenatee |forces1= *2nd Fleet of Undying Justice ** ** ** ** |forces2= *3rd Fleet of Rectifying Judgement ** ** **20 CRS-Class Light Cruisers ** **10 Covenant Battleships **6 SDV-Class Heavy Corvettes ** *Sanghelios Defence Fleet **1 CAS-Class Assault Carrier **17 Covenant Frigates ** **6 CCS-Class Battlecruisers |casual1= *Kyrin 'Forus *1 CAS-Class Assault Carrier *4 CRS-Class Light Cruisers *3 SDV-Class Heavy Corvettes *3 Covenant Battleships |casual2= *5 Covenant Frigates *1 CCS-Class Battlecruiser }} In the final cycles of the Grey Rebellion, Kyrin 'Forus and the last soldiers of the 2nd Fleet of Undying Justice attempted a last ditch effort to spread the words of The Knowing to the citizens of . While they ultimately failed in their suicidal endeavour, the Grey Rebellion became a permanent stain on the history the Covenant. Destruction of the Remnants of the 2nd Fleet of Undying Justice When the Blinding Fury and the remnants of the 2nd Fleet of Undying Justice entered the , the Defence Fleet (SDF) immediately moved to defensive positions, as an unprecedented slipspace rupture of that magnitude so deep in Covenant controlled space had never occurred before. When the SDF was hailed by the Blinding Fury, Fleet Master Vaht 'Lhenatee contacted that the Grey Rebellion was in the Urs System. With that knowledge, Imperial Admiral Laras 'Jar Dunkaree and the 3rd Fleet of Rectifying Judgement, under the orders of the High Prophetess of Reconciliation traveled urgently toward the system in the hopes of finally crushing 'Forus and his fleet. Before the Imperial Admiral arrived in the Urs system, the SDF engaged the Blinding Fury and the remaining ships of the Grey Rebellion. Outnumbered 3-1 by the defensive force, and not accepting the hails from the Grey Fleet, two light cruisers and a corvette were destroyed in short time. Retaliating quickly, the Blinding Fury led an aggressive head-on assault against the SDF. Not expecting such a rash strategic decision, 'Lhenatee was caught off guard and five frigates and a battlecruiser were destroyed, with another light cruiser and a battleship of the Grey Fleet being destroyed. At this point in the skirmish, 'Dunkaree and his fleet entered the system. Caught between the SDF and the gigantic 3rd Fleet of Rectifying Judgement, the 2nd Fleet of Undying Justice finally met its' end above the red skies of Sanghelios. The Death of Kyrin 'Forus After the remnants of The Grey Fleet was destroyed and the Blinding Fury disabled, multiple boarding parties, which included Imperial Admiral Laras 'Jar Dunkaree and a strike force with under the command of Alei 'Komtaree immediately set out with the explicit orders from the High Prophetess of Reconciliation to apprehend Kyrin 'Forus, the leader of The Grey Rebellion. Prepared for the ferocious and tenacious combat of the Grey forces, as was shown in the Liberation of Balaho and the Siege of Te, the Imperial Admiral and the boarding Covenant forces still suffered many casualties before finally making it to the Furys' bridge. Alone on the bridge, 'Forus ambushed 'Dunkaree and the main boarding party with a fuel rod gun, wiping out a large portion of the Imperial Admirals' force due to the choke-point the entrance to the bridge created. Only the superior shielding and quick reflexes that Dunkaree possessed saved his life from the explosive rounds. In short time, 'Forus engaged the Imperial Admiral with his energy sword. At first, the duel between the two was relatively even, but as 'Dunkaree recovered from the ambush, it became clear that he was the superior fighter of the two, as the duel continued, Laras eventually disarmed Kyrin and incapacitated him with an energy sword wound to the thigh. 'Forus was taken from the Blinding Fury onto the Ultimate Ascension and, as they left the Urs System the flagship of the Grey Rebellion was obliterated into dust. During the short return to , Kyrin, incapacitated by his leg wound and stripped of his weapons and armour had the cut into the right side of his chest by Laras' . This act proved Dunkarees' dedication and faith in the Covenant and the Great Journey. When the 3rd Fleet of Rectifying Judgement returned to High Charity, it was announced that the Grey Rebellion had been extinguished and Kyrin 'Forus captured. The public execution of The Grey Heretic was to be held in less than a cycle and all members of the Holy Covenant were invited to attend. Before Kyrins' execution, he was brought before the Noble Hierarchs and, under the stare of the , the grey armour that signified his affiliation to the Grey Rebellion was burnt and destroyed, and his body virtually fried and branded with the Mark of Shame for a second time by Laras. When Kyrins' body was nearly broken, he suffered one last act of torture. Once again using his energy dagger, Laras amputated 'Forus' four jaws and presented them to the High Prophetess of Reconciliation, as she specifically ordered. When Kyrin was released from his bindings and made to kneel, facing the and thousands upon thousands of citizens of the Holy City, he was finally executed at the hands of the Imperial Admiral. After Kyrins' decapitation, his head was formally presented to the Hierarchs and his body was hung by his entrails for all of the Covenant to see. Notable Individuals Fleet Master Kyrin 'Forus Main Article: Kyrin 'Forus Shipmaster of the Blinding Fury, Fleet Master of the 2nd Fleet of Undying Justice and eventual Leader of the Grey Rebellion, Kyrin 'Forus is nearly strategically unparalleled in the Covenant Military and the one who sowed the seeds for the events of The Great Schism five hundred years later. A pivotal figure in Covenant history, Kyrin 'Forus is someone that should never be forgotten by those who once walked the halls of High Charity. 'Forus finally met his end at the hands of Imperial Admiral Laras 'Jar Dunkaree after he was captured at the Grey Rebellion Apex. In the halls of High Charity they sang the word "Heretic" as his head was presented to the . Imperial Admiral Laras 'Jar Dunkaree Main Article: Laras 'Jar Dunkaree ''"I will rip out his hearts and feed them to the Kig-Yar..." — Imperial Admiral Laras 'Jar Dunkaree to the High Prophetess of Reconciliation on Kyrin 'Forus. While not actually a part of the Grey Rebellion, Laras 'Jar Dunkaree was a key player in the destruction of the rebel faction. His ruthless mindset of dealing with heretics shone through when confronting Grey forces, where he, with his nigh unstoppable supercarrier pulverized any resistance. His intimidation of Zakl 'Nenil, who had lost hope in the Rebellion allowed him to get the information he needed on the Rebellions' next attack at Pegasi Delta, which allowed him to nearly destroy the entirety of the 2nd Fleet of Undying Justice right there and then. When Laras boarded the Blinding Fury and went up against Kyrin 'Forus, the strategically superior opponent, his sheer ferocity, power and natural skill with a blade allowed him to defeat the heretical Sangheili in short order, incapacitating him and eventually torturing him before executing him himself at High Charity. Shipmaster Zakl 'Nenil Main Article: Zakl 'Nenil Second-in-command of the Grey Rebellion, Zakl 'Nenil is responsible for the discovery of The Knowing on Zoela-3 and ultimately the creation of the Grey Rebellion. A fierce warrior with an extremely strong sense of honour and loyalty, even in the culture of the Sangheili. Zakl was killed along with the majority of the rebellion at Pegasi Delta when Imperial Admiral Laras 'Jar Dunkaree emerged with one of the biggest singular fleets in the Covenant Military in system. Species of the Grey Rebellion Sangheili The Sangheili, while not making up the majority of the Grey Rebellions' forces are without a doubt the only reason it lasted for any significant amount of time. Their fierce determination, tenacity in battle and strategical prowess has only been magnified by their knowledge of the false lies the spread, along with the fact that they are essentially a cornered animal, they are far more ferocious and dangerous than their Covenant counter-parts. Unggoy Making up the majority of the Grey Rebellions' forces, the of the 2nd Fleet of Undying Justice have become furious at their old masters that the Great Journey was simply a lie fabricated to keep their allegiance out of fear. The many sacrifices the Unggoy of had committed under the command of the Covenant was immeasurable, and they sought revenge, making the Unggoy of the Grey Rebellion far more blood thirsty, and far less likely to run from battle. Kig-Yar The , one of the two races of the Grey Rebellion that didn't follow the Covenant religion as heavily as the Sangheili and Unggoy, were still outraged at the San 'Shyuum for their lies, as they had mostly promised them riches and leisure, but instead would have been delivered death and total annihilation at the hands of the Hierarchs. The Kig-Yar had every right to go against the Covenant, but simply for different reasons. Mgalekgolo The worm colonies of that make up the still hold bad blood for the Covenant after their near extinction at their home world of and the event known as the , so when they discovered that the Hierarchs of the Covenant had lied to them about the Great Journey, it simply fueled the fire for their rebellion against them. Though relatively few in number in the Grey Rebellion, the Mgalekgolo are a valuable asset for defense against boarding parties, should the need ever arise. Related Articles *Kyrin 'Forus *Laras 'Jar Dunkaree *Zakl 'Nenil *Alei 'Komtaree *The Y'deio Uprising *Blinding Fury *The 2nd Fleet of Undying Justice *Ultimate Ascension *The 3rd Fleet of Rectifying Judgement *29th Age of Conflict *Tactics Master